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The Apache Kid
The legend of the Apache Kid is well known among southwestern history fans. The Kid had once been a trusted Army scout and later a wanted killer. His daring escape along with other Apache prisoners on the way to Yuma Territorial Prison left two lawmen dead and sparked one of the largest manhunts in Arizona history. The escape happened a short distance from the old stage station town of Riverside near present day Kelvin near Kearny.
The failure of the manhunt to capture the Apache Kid while all his accomplices were killed or captured led to the growth of his legend as killings and raids on ranchers began being blamed on the Apache Kid. The raids and killings happened from Globe and San Carlos down in the San Pedro Valley to New Mexico and the Sierra Madre Mountains in Mexico where sightings of him were reported.
On Jan. 8 at 2 p.m., the Acadia Ranch Museum in Oracle will host Douglas Hamilton’s presentation on “The Escape of the Apache Kid”. The presentation will cover events leading up to the Kid’s trial, the escape and the events that followed including what became of the Kid. Images of all the principal participants and the escape sight will be shown. Refreshments will be served. The presentation is free although donations to the museum are gladly accepted.
Douglas Hamilton is a retired University of Arizona professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He has been doing research on southwestern history. Doug is co-author of several textbooks, of Photographing Mesa Verde: Nordenskjold and Now, a book in the Mesa Verde Centennial Series. He has written a monograph, Military Debacle in Cottonwood Wash: The Apache Ambush of Captain Frank Millar and Assistant Surgeon Benjamin Tappan Jr. Doug lives in Kearny.
The Acadia Ranch Museum is located at 825 E. Mount Lemmon Hwy. near the post office.
John Hernandez lives in Oracle. He is retired and enjoys writing and traveling. He is active in the Oracle Historical Society. He covers numerous public events, researches historical features and writes business/artist profiles.
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